‘Yes, I do belong’: the women who stay in engineering

Abstract

Despite considerable work to encourage girls and women to enter the profession, engineering continues to be heavily male dominated, a situation which has implications for quality and gender equity. The gender disparity is accentuated by women being more likely to leave the profession than men. A number of studies have investigated why women leave engineering. This study focuses on the converse question, ‘What makes some women stay when many others leave?’ A survey of a cohort of Australian female civil engineers found an unusually high retention rate. Interviews with volunteers from the group revealed that they had all entered the profession strongly believing in themselves as engineers, a belief that had endured despite the difficulties they encountered. As found in other studies, many of these women had experienced being isolated, overlooked and marginalised in the prevailing masculine culture of engineering workplaces. Their persistence in the profession appeared to be connected to steps they had taken to ensure that their work environment matched their expectations of interesting, challenging and enjoyable work in a supportive and inclusive culture. The implications of their experiences for other women engineers and for engineering managers are suggested.